Praise Him!

Psalm 145 "I will exalt you, my God and King; I will praise your name for ever and ever.  Every day I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever.  Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom.  One generation will commend your works to another; they will tell of your mighty acts.  They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty, and I will meditate on your wonderful works.  They will tell of the power of your awesome works, and I will proclaim your great deeds.  They will celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness... All you have made will praise you, O Lord; your saints will extol you.  They will tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might, so that all men may know of your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of your kingdom... The Lord watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.  My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord.  Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever."

If we do not praise and exalt in Him, if we do not lift him up and sing of his glory, then even the rocks will cry out.  We can not keep quiet.

"Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!"  Psalm 150:6

Father God, you are beautiful and gracious!  You are full of compassion!  Your works are mighty!  I praise you for you who are!  I thank you for what you have done for me!  Hallowed be your name!

Gifts in Secret

Matthew 6:1-4 "Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them.  If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.  So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men.  I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.  But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in the secret.  Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."
Matthew 6:19-21  "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal... For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

     Everyone likes a pat on the back once in a while or a nice word to say that we did well.  The encouragement can help us understand that we are doing what we are supposed to be doing.  This is especially important for children.  If they never hear positive reinforcement then, as parents, we aren't giving them the guidance that we should be.  They need direction and encouragement to learn how to be men and women of God.
     However, I have found there to be an issue.  When I look at what the Bible has to say, it talks a great deal about encouraging one another.  But how are we supposed to encourage each other?  We tend to focus on doing the good deed instead of   why   we should be doing the good deed.   We need to refocus our encouragement.  With children, at the appropriate age, this also includes teaching them that their God honoring choices shouldn't be announced.  It's so easy as adults to call up a friend and casually tell them a good thing that you did.  You want your friend to approve and give you adoration.  We need to retrain ourselves so that we can train up our children correctly.  How wonderful our treasures in heaven will be!  I don't want to squander them on praise from people.
   
1 Thessalonians 5 talks about encouraging one another in the Lord that we will be doing what God wants us to be doing so that when he returns we will be ready.
Romans 15:5 "May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ."
Acts 11:23 "When he arrived and saw what the Grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts."
John 12:43 "...for they loved praise from men more than praise from God."
     
"Lord,  I want to adore you and praise you in all that I do.  Please help me to seek your adoration and not man's praise.  Help others to see your beauty in me and not just good works that I do.  I want you at the center.  Keep my focus on you, Father.  You are so good.  There is no good thing in me outside of you.  All that I am and all the gifts I have are only mine because you gave them to me.  You and give and you take away.  Show me how to live this life for your glory, Lord God.  Amen."

The Power of Words

Proverbs 19:11  "A man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense."

Ephesian 4:32  "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ, God forgave you."

Proverbs 15:1  "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger."

Proverbs 10:19  "When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise."


James 3:9  "With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, which have been made in God's likeness."

Matthew 12:34  "...out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks."


     The tongue is a tool.  We can use it to lift others up, OR we can use it to tear them down.  When a person is angry, words tend to come easily.  The sad part is, it usually reveals what the heart holds inside - and often times it isn't pretty.  There is no good thing in me except that which is of the Lord.  The sin nature is strong.
     The people that are closest to us tend to get the brunt of our words - good AND bad.  As a Christian the overflow of our heart should be of praise and uplifting, always pointing to the Father.  As a mom I know it can be so difficult to not spat words of anger at my children when I'm upset.  I've often heard parents count to three for their children in order to give them a warning that they need to stop whatever they're doing.  I would propose that parents need to count to three for themselves.... or to ten or twenty for that matter.  Children will mimic what they see.  If you wonder why your child yells when upset about something you are doing, examine yourself and how you (and the child's other parent) react to the child's disobedience.  I began to see my 4-year old responding to me in ways that I wasn't exactly pleased with.  Let's just say my husband gently pointed out where he picked it them up.
     The same is true with the way I treat others.  My child sees and hears the way I speak to others and about others - even when I don't think he's paying attention.  My husband and I are big on respect.  We talk to our little boy about this quite often.  There have been a couple of instances when he has said something that made us want to crawl into a box.  We realized that my husband's seemingly harmless sarcasm and joking was not understood by our 4-year old and was in return said by him in a demeaning and disrespectful way to another person.  Joking can be okay when it is done correctly, but it can be so harmful when said out of place.  A good rule:  If you wouldn't say it to their face, don't say it at all.  I will note though, children have a way of taking even good joking and turning it into something embarrassing.
    Finally, I want my children to see that God is a forgiving God.  He is a God of compassion, grace, and mercy.  We must exemplify these qualities in our own lives if we want our children to understand how we are to be as Jesus is.  I've learned that when I do speak angry words to my boys, they need to hear me say that I'm sorry.  When I make a bad decision, they need to hear me say I'm sorry.  My husband and I are always telling our oldest boy that he needs to say sorry when he does something wrong.  We need to be the example of that.  What a disaster if our children grow up thinking that Daddy and Mommy never do anything wrong or even if we do we don't have to say that we're sorry.  What kind of man doesn't apologize?  We need to show him what true humility is and what true forgiveness and love look like.
     One of my favorite quotes is this,

"A friend is one to whom you can pour out the contents of your heart, chaff and grain alike.  Knowing that the gentlest of hands will take and sift it, keep what is worth keeping, and with a breath of kindness, blow the rest away." ~Anonymous

Through My Child's Eyes

After having morning devotions with my 4-year old this was his conclusion, "If Satan tried to get me to do bad things I would just say to him, 'You know what?  You're afraid of Jesus, aren't you?' And then he would just go, 'Uhhh...' (with wide eyes) and run away."

There is power in the Jesus' name.

"You know what, Mom?  Satan isn't even powerful enough to push Jesus off a rock!"
I asked him what else he knows about Satan.  He didn't miss a beat.  "He tricks people.  I know that he makes himself bad.  And I know that he makes himself into a tiger or anything.  But he can't make himself into a human.  Only Jesus can be a human like us... Did you know that Satan is just wild?  He's in the wild.  Wild is outside... Satan can make himself jealous... He can throw a fit.  He can throw a fit as long as he wants.  Satan is bad and in trouble... He can mess up claws."

I love how children take in everything and the way they translate what they've learned.  Granted it's not always completely accurate, but it's so precious and innocent.

This is how Camden would tell someone who Jesus is, "Jesus is the one that created you and made you."
And how do you get to heaven, I asked him.  "You got to go to the sky, through the space, then to heaven.  Jesus can carry them up to heaven.  Jesus holds them."

When asked how he would explain to someone who Satan is, he simply said, "Satan is bad."

If Jesus is more powerful than anything on this earth... if He can overcome Satan and all of his tricks and lies... if He can overcome death... if God is magnificent enough to create us and this big world... WHY do we have such a hard time believing that our Savior can take care of the minuscule problems that we encounter in life?  If the answer to who Satan is so simple then why do we give into him so often.  We are told that Satan is the father of lies.  We MUST cling to Jesus with all that we are and have a childlike faith.

Golden Rule

"Do to others what you would have them do to you." (Matthew 7:12)

It's the golden rule.  Each major religion has this verse in some form or another as a rule to live by.  It makes me wonder why we have so many issues in our world then.

My 4 year old is memorizing this verse right now.  It's the basic rule that we drill into children but have such a difficult time abiding by as adults.  Even as I live out each day I realize that there are times I do not show my son what this means.  Hypocrite is a word that makes me cringe but I know that there are times I fit the description.  Sad, but true.

As I work through memorizing verses with my child, it stretches and encourages me to be a godly example to my children and husband.  It keeps the Word hidden deep in my heart so that it may radiate through my life.  My prayer is that I would not darken God's light and that His love and truth would be what people see when they look at me.

Tears That Cleanse

“Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.  Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”

Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.”

“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.

Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet.  Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”

Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”

Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”  (Luke 7:41-50)

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him.  She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said.  But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:38-42)


     Simon and Martha had big heart issues.  Doing good things won't get a person very far.  It may impress humans for a while, but God looks beyond appearances.  He knows when a heart truly praises and serves.  Example: Just because someone has their eyes closed as they sing doesn't mean they are truly worshiping.  People want to "look good".  He also knows when people are doing good to impress others.  Do I care if others see the good I do?  My reward is in heaven.  I should prefer that no one sees me.
     Do I sit at the feet of God and revel in His glory and beauty or am I too busy to notice who it is that I am serving?  I want to be a Mary.  Sometimes I think being a Martha can be easier.  It doesn't require a person to look too closely at their own heart and motives.  But sooner or later it has to stop.  If I operate on just doing and going I will run out of steam.  Allowing God to do the work through me is the only way to continue serving.  He will give me the wisdom and discernment to do what I need to do.  I don't want to mess it up.  God has to be behind the wheel.  Not me.
     Do I look down on others because I haven't done some of the "bad things" they've done?  I should hope not!  No sin is greater than another.  The only unforgivable sin is rejecting Jesus.  If God doesn't hold a pecking order for his children based on what they have and haven't done then I shouldn't either.   


Mark 2:17
On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”


"Lord, show me your will.  Help me to serve YOU as an act of worship, Father.  You see my heart.  I desire to please you.  I am grateful for all you have done for me.  I know there is nothing I can do to repay you, but I also know that from my faith should come fruit.  I want to be fruit-bearing.  Show me how.  Help me to grasp the opportunities you give me.  Please lead me, Lord.  I want you behind the wheel." 

Give It Up

Jeremiah 29:13 "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all of your heart."

     A young woman bent her knees and softly fell to the floor as tears began to spill.  "Lord, I'm done fighting.  I can't do this on my own."  She reached for the letter - the letter that would decide her baby's fate - and ripped it in half.  "I've tried to do this on my own for so long.  Giving myself to someone to try and fill this void.  He doesn't want this baby, Lord.  But, I just can't!  I can't turn my back and pretend like it never happened.  This baby deserves to be loved!"  As she felt her still small tummy, she caught a glimpse of a picture from last year's 4th of July Fireworks.  She and her boyfriend were holding hands.  They looked happy.  Hadn't he said he wanted to marry her?  But now, with a baby on the way, he wanted nothing to do with her unless she "took care of it".
     Church had been part of her life... until she met Eddy.  Going once in a while counted though, didn't it?  She remembered to pray at meal time... most of the time.  Wasn't that worth something?  When she did mess up and guilt consumed her, she always went to confession... but then it didn't seem quite so important after a while.  Anyhow, didn't the priest do something that made things right for her with God?  Hmmm...
     She looked up at the torn papers and closed her eyes.  As she had left Planned Parenthood that morning, she ran into a girl from school.  She barely knew the girl, but remembered seeing her at the prayer times held by the flagpole once a month.  Well, she used to go too...  The girl saw the tears that were filling her eyes and asked if she was okay.  Something broke and she confided in this girl right in the middle of the strip mall parking lot.  "You don't have to do this.  God loves this child already and I can see that you do too.  Would you like to come and speak with my pastor?  He'll be very confidential and I know he'll help you figure this out.  I can come too... if you want."  She just shook her head.  "No, confessing my sins won't do any good.  I've already tried that."  The girl rubbed her arm and smiled.  "I'm not talking about confessing.  That's between you and God.  But sometimes it helps if you can talk to someone who has already worked through these types of things with other people."  After a long pause she finally nodded.  "I guess it can't hurt."
     She never knew it could be like that.  The young woman sat up and leaned against her bed.  She dug around in her pocket until her fingers grasped what she was looking for.  After an hour of talking with the girl and her pastor, he had given her his card along with his wife's phone number written on it.  "Giving bits and pieces of myself to you is worthless, Lord.  I get that now.  I'm so sorry I walked away.  Please take me back.  I'm yours.  I'm done running."  For the first time in her life, she felt close to God.

Sometimes we can feel so alone.  But then, if we pick ourselves up, we realize that God was always there.   It was us who walked away.  One decision leads to another.  Each step seems so small and insignificant at the time.  But they aren't.  So, where will our decisions take us today?  I choose God.



    

Judah's Adultery

   

     In Jeremiah there is an example given in regards to adultery that is quite sobering.  "...Judah had no fear; she also went out and committed adultery.  Because Israel's immorality mattered so little to her, she defiled the land and committed adultery with stone and wood." 
     So often we hear the word 'adultery' and attribute the definition of sexual relations between a married person and someone who is not their spouse.  There is more to it than that.  God is very serious when it comes to adultery.  Israel was unfaithful to Him, knowingly giving themselves in worship to foreign, man-made gods.
     As a true Christian, God is our husband and we are his bride.  He wants us to himself, and he is unwilling to share us.  Some may argue this to be selfish on God's part.  Why does He always have to have every little part of our lives?  In response to this I would challenge that person to think of their married life (if they are married). Would you be okay with your husband or wife going out for casual lunch dates with someone of the opposite sex?  Is there no problem with lengthy phone calls to someone other than your spouse when that person is the opposite gender?  Are you going to say it's okay for your spouse to try and satisfy their longings with images of someone other than you?  Would you see nothing wrong with your spouse buying meaningful gifts for another person of the opposite sex on a regular basis 'just to be nice'?  I believe that anyone who would say there is no issue with these things does not value their marriage and probably won't have a marriage that lasts.
     I, for one, do not want to be second rate to my husband.  I adore him and want to be the only one that he adores.  In the same way, God does not want our leftovers.  He is not interested in seeing our halfhearted efforts of what we deem to be 'worship' because we feel like we owe it to Him.  Worship is physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual.  If we are giving true worship to our King, then there will be no room for other idols.

To Hold Him In Awe

Jeremiah 2:19  " 'Your wickedness will punish you; your backsliding will rebuke you.  Consider then and... 
     realize how evil and bitter it is for you when you forsake the
     LORD your God and have no awe of me,' declares the Lord,
     the LORD Almighty."


Jeremiah 2:26-28  "As a thief is disgraced when he is caught, so the house of Israel is disgraced - they, their kings and their officials, their priests and their prophets.  They say to wood, 'You are my father,' and to stone, 'You gave me birth.'  They have turned their backs to me and not their faces;  yet when they are in trouble, they say, 'Come and save us!'  Where then are the gods you made for yourselves?  Let them come if they can save you when you are in trouble!  For you have as many gods as you have towns, O Judah."


Jeremiah was a written warning to Judah.  God was not going to put up with Judah's willful disobedience.  A time was coming when they would know His wrath.  (There are glimpses of Judah's future redemption throughout, however.)

I was reading part of chapter two today and the above verses really stuck out to me.  The emboldened text has gone through my head many times and I just can't shake it.  There have been times in the past few days when I have been very convicted about my walk with the Lord.  Where is my awe of HIM?  If I can't see it, surely no one else will either.  My heart is not aching to spend time with Him.  And I know why this is.  I have not made the effort to dwell on His Word and in prayer consistently, daily.  I have not been making it a priority to continually rest in His arms and seek His will.  I have not sat in the quiet and simply marveled at God's majesty in a long time.
I think about my husband and how I love him in an unbelievable way. There is nothing I like better than to sit with him, laugh with him, and spend time admiring him.  He is a gift to me.  If God is supposed to be my number one love, I must do so much more for Him.  Erecting idols in my life - whether it be my husband, children, home, etc... - will bring me nothing but despair in the long run.  I always tell my 4-year-old, "There is nothing more important in life than to love God with all of your heart.  You are to love Him more than you love me and Daddy and brother.  The Bible says, 'Love the Lord with all of your and heart and then love others.' "  He has heard me say this many times.  But do I live it?  I've told him, "I love God most.  He is the most important.  And then, Daddy and you boys are next most important thing in my life."  Words without action are empty.
         
   My faith must be lived out in word and in truth and with action!  

           One thing is certain, I do not want my children to grow up and think of me as a hypocrite.

"Father, I ask you to help me realize the areas in my life where idols have been put up.  Show me the things that keep me from giving all of myself to you.  You are the most important thing.  I ask that you would put a fire in my heart; that nothing would be more important to me than you and that my life would show this.  I want to desire to spend time with you and basque in your glory.  I want to see you lifted up and exalted.  My life needs to radiate this for my childrens' sake and my own.  You deserve sooo much more than I can ever give.  Let there be no wicked way in me.  Keep me close to your heart, Father."

Man's Wisdom = Foolish.

"And David inquired of the Lord."  Some might wonder why a 'man after God's own heart' would ever have to inquire as what to do.  He walked alongside the Lord and knew what was right... didn't he?
David and many other prominent figures in the Bible walked closely with God because they relied on Him and fed from Him regularly.  With out God they were nothing. No decision was right without consulting God first.

Man's wisdom in foolishness but the wisdom of the Lord is everlasting and beautiful - perfect in every way.

Do I inquire of the Lord or get along fine without him because I know the gist of what is Biblical.
"Lord, help me to rely on your every word and breath.  Keep me from leaning on myself.  None of my assumptions will do any good without you being at the forefront.  I want my life to radiate you because you are leading it."

God Can Do All Things

"We doubt your goodness...
We doubt your love...
As if every promise from your Word is not enough.
But all the while you hear each desperate plea.

What if healing comes through tears?...
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know you're near?
What if the aching of this life is the revealing of a greater thirst...
this world can't satisfy?

What if the trials of this life are your mercies in disguise?...

This is not our home...."

My heart aches for what was as I try to figure out what the Lord has for me in this stage of my life.  No big disasters or illnesses or deaths have clouded my view, only the loss of what my life once consisted of and the uncertainty of what my life now holds.  I have two choices:

I can allow myself to be overwhelmed and dwell on what once was.
OR
I can make a conscious decision to teach my children to be content with where God has placed them and to make the most of every opportunity.

                  In other words:

I can view this change as a disappointment, a heartache, a challenge I don't want to face...
OR
I can face it straight on as an opportunity, a growing experience, a challenge I will overcome!

I need to be heavenly minded.

Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."  This is my life verse and has been for many years.  Nothing can overcome me or beat me down unless I allow it to.  "Lord, I am grateful that you never give me more than I can handle.  Help me to remember this and cling to it always!  You are my stronghold!  I will praise you always!  For you are the Almighty, my Savior, my God, my Father, my Friend.  Comfort me and direct me in all I do, Lord."

Living NOT in Fear

     I believe God knows exactly what we need long before we do.  And it often takes a long time of going through the trial before we realize that God has a plan in it.  There are even instances when we will never see just why God has allowed certain things to happen.  This can be scary.  It can be comforting.  It can be overwhelming.  It can be calming.  What we choose to do with this reality determines how we walk through each trial placed before us.  We will not be very useful if we live in fear.
     Choosing an attitude of gratitude results in open eyes and hearts to serve the Lord in every situation.  Thank you, Lord, that you know what is best.  I am grateful that you walk through each moment with me.  If God whispered in my ear everything that was going to happen and what I am to do with it, I have a feeling I would be more fearful than ever.  Bad things will happen in my life.  I'd rather just trust that God will see me through no matter what.
     In Jeremiah it says that God puts His words into Jeremiah's mouth so he does not have to fear not knowing what to say or do in each situation.  And then, Jeremiah 1:17-19 says, " 'Get yourself ready!  Stand up and say to them whatever I command you.  Do not be terrified by them, or I will terrify you before them.  Today I have made you a fortified city, an iron pillar and a bronze wall to stand against the whole land - against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests and the people of the land.  They will fight against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you and will rescue you,' declares the Lord."  The Bible is so clear that nothing can thwart God's plan.  He has a plan to grow me in my faith and to use me to grow others in their faiths.  His plan will succeed!  Am I a willing vessel?  Do I choose to live in great expectation of what the Almighty will do?